FAR FROM lamenting yet another loss to Collingwood, Sydney Swans coach John Longmire was taking plenty of positives out of an eight-point defeat at ANZ Stadium.

The Swans' losing run against the Pies stretched to 11 matches following the 12.6 (78) to 9.16 (70) defeat in front of 45,827 fans.

Longmire admitted that some of his players were down on the form they had shown during the nine-match winning streak that had carried it to the top of the ladder.

But he was a long way from tearing his hair out at his side's first defeat since losing to St Kilda in round nine.

"I thought it was two teams having an absolute crack," he said.

"If you go through all the stats, it was very even.

"In the end they did a few things right towards the end that meant they got over the line.

"We had 25 scoring shots to 18, missed a few chances that would've made a difference, but you need to do the right things for the whole game to beat a team like Collingwood."

The Swans had opened a 17-point lead midway through the third term as they attempted to remove the sizeable Collingwood monkey from their back.

But the Pies fought back, with Jarryd Blair, Travis Cloke and the brilliant Dayne Beams kicking final term goals.

Still, Ben McGlynn's goal with one minute remaining cut the deficit to two, before the Pies claimed the final all-important clearance leading to Beams' sealer.

"I thought we did a lot of things right," Longmire said.

"We were two points down with 15 seconds to go.

"It's measured by inches I guess and the team that comes out in front is happy with what they did in the last five minutes of the game and we think we can improve on it."

When it was suggested he hadn't received an even contribution from his list, Longmire agreed.

"It wasn't," he said. "And we got beaten by eight points.

"If we got beaten by 10 goals, you could start pointing a few fingers.

"In the whole wash up there wasn't much difference tonight.

"There wasn't a lot separating us. Maybe a few players could play a bit better, but there's probably a few on the opposite side that could say the same thing.

"We need to assess it in the clear light of day."

He also wasn't interested in the concept of a loss his side had to have leading into the finals.

"No, I don't believe in that," he said.

"We'll get a lot out of tonight. [Collingwood] have been a good team for a long time and we'll assess the game on Monday, look at what we did well, what we can improve upon, and move on."

James Dampney covers Sydney AFL news for AFL.com.au. Follow him on Twitter: @AFL_JD